I've been working on trying to retract my scapula and keep my back from hunching. How does it look?
Also, is there any issue with doing these on my fingertips vs on my palms? I find them significantly more difficult on the palms:
Msh Hold Critique
Started by Joshua Slocum, January 17, 2013 · 11 Replies · 2,501 Views
Very nice 
You are a big guy it seems, what is your weight & how tall are you?
(also, what sort of camera are you using, how far is it from you when you are filming? It is a wide angle lens, isn't it?)
Height/weight: 66 in / 170 lbs or 167 cm / 77 kg.
(The camera is a GoPro Hero Black. It was on the order of 6-8 feet away. The lens is wide-angle)
Thank you; it must be the body proportions then, you look a lot bigger than you are in this video.
Pretty good camera... I need to get one of these.
Damn man, you're heavy for a gymnast 
Doing it on fingertips is fine. Focus should be on pushing the hips away from the hands, the handplacement doesn't really matter (as long as the fingers point backwards).
I think you're arms are not perfectly locked in the first vid. Locking them will actually make it easier I think, because you'll be able to activate your triceps a lot more which will make pushing the hips forward a lot easier. At least that's what I feel.
Yeah, I would actually drop some weight if I knew a good way to do so without losing strength.
I agree about locking the arms. That's something I've been working on. My instinct is to bend the arms and hunch the shoulders, so I have to fight hard to correct those. Thanks for the tips.
It's been getting better over time. I can hold it for much longer now, and my shoulders are depressed and more retracted:
I'm thinking that I will try to start elevating a little bit next week. Thoughts?
Not sure but I think you need to still retract more on that hold. Hopefully someone more experience with mannas will say though. Also, cool room/gym! Rings and a rock climbing wall!
I feel like the only way to retract my shoulders would be to push my hips forward.
If you look at this video, the athlete's shoulders are more neutral than actively retracted, unless he presses much higher: http://youtu.be/rX4zPm95dAY
Hows the progress? Im in a similar place. Ive really focused on pushing my hips out and creating space between hands and butt. Ive tried lifting into it a few times and usually only get into a v-sit before I fall backwards.
Hari_Seldon said:'m thinking that I will try to start elevating a little bit next week. Thoughts?
You are lifting your butt first, then legs, as far I remember coach's explanation - idea of MSH is to lift them both at the same time, you have to push your hips forward a bit (what will require a bit of lean backwards with upper body as well esp with high MSH).
Daniel Burnham said:Hows the progress? Im in a similar place. Ive really focused on pushing my hips out and creating space between hands and butt. Ive tried lifting into it a few times and usually only get into a v-sit before I fall backwards.
I've started going back and re-learning it with my hands flat, because it feels like that forces me to lean back even further. I'm still a little wobbly on the balance, so I'm going to work on that more before I start seriously trying to push my hips forward.